Motor News

When the original Gran Turismo launched on the first Sony PlayStation in 1997, each vehicle was built from 300 polygons. Today, more than 500,000 tiny triangular shapes create the cars in the latest racing simulator, Gran Turismo 7. The result of 25 years of research, processing power, and improvements is simply breathtaking.

Among the wealth of polygons are smaller details that make GT7 more beautiful than past Gran Turismo titles and, arguably, any other video game before it. It’s the static chassis slouch in photo mode from the car parked with its front wheels angled. Getting pulled off course from standing water on the racing surface. And, after an event, the audible metallic clinking from steamy brakes fresh off the circuit. That barely scratches the surface of what Gran Turismo is today, but when game studio Polyphony Digital’s CEO, Kazunori Yamauchi, said this is the most complete Gran Turismo game ever, he wasn’t playing.The Realest Driving SimulatorToday’s gaming hardware highlights some of our favorite features about GT7. Sure, it’s available on PS4, but the more powerful PS5 console connected to a 4K television is truly the best way to experience everything GT7 wants to show you. The HDR visuals during normal gameplay, and ray-tracing technology that’s only available during replay, photo, and demo modes, had us window shopping the car dealership menus just to admire the visuals.

When GT7 teased its adaptive trigger and haptic feedback functionality for Sony’s PlayStation 5 DualSense controller, racing fans rejoiced—those without an amateur NASA spaceship simulator in their living rooms, anyway. Although the adaptive triggers do deliver a sense of electronically assisted accelerator or brake like you’d find on most cars today, it’s no replacement for an actual direct-drive steering wheel and pedals. However, the resistance in both triggers does make for the most dynamic sense of driving we’ve experienced from a controller. The trigger for acceleration feels different than the trigger for braking, just like real foot pedals. Rather than shaking like an angry rattlesnake, the haptic feedback accurately adds vibration to specific parts of the controller. Put the right side of the car onto curbing, and only the right side of the controller rumbles. It’s not as impressive as the adaptive triggers, but feeling even the most subtle feedback in your hands from drivetrain or tire movement is worth the extra battery consumption.

There’s a noticeable difference between the driving physics in Gran Turismo 7 and the series’ last installment, Gran Turismo Sport. It really comes down to a better depiction of suspension travel and car control. It doesn’t seem like cars are clinging to a horizontal plane atop a flat surface anymore. The chassis twists and bends independently from the tires. This is especially obvious in the cockpit camera: as your driver saws at the wheel, there’s head bobble and shake. Wet surfaces also highlight this. The racetrack’s best line will begin to dry after lapping, returning grip and different driving characteristics to that area of the track. During a race at the Tokyo Expressway, it was raining harder in some corners than others.The 3D spatial audio was a little harder to perceive. This might be because early into our review time we opted to fully crank the engine noise, a setting in the various menu options. Players can also adjust the volume for tire squeal, transmission, and opponent’s car sound. There were no deep burbles or dramatic backfires in any of the cars we sampled from GT7, but overall the improved directional audio, surface, and wind noise helped simulate something real. The 3D audio is easier to notice in replays, as the camera pans across multiple vehicles, all shifting and accelerating at different points. It doesn’t just sound less like a herd of cars, but more like different cars at different speeds in different parts of the track. Picture ThisThe Gran Turismo photo mode, Scapes, has received more configurability options. Extra details like brake dust, tire dirt, and damage can be added to cars in Scapes mode, adding to the realism of photographing a car on snow or dirt. Now, with ray-tracing, the images created can be difficult to discern from reality. Scapes uses more than 2500 locations in over 40 countries. We found a few familiar Detroit streets (not too far from Car and Driver headquarters), parking garages, and buildings from our own photo shoots in this mode.

Sony Interactive Entertainment

Replay cameras deserve a mention, too. The positions and panning during replays are the best they’ve ever been. And unlike a huge moment during a Formula 1 race, the folks in the booth seem to know when not to cut away from the action. It’s a small detail, but that’s why this series is so significant. Everything matters, down to the final 500,000th polygon.Yes, We’re OpenThe new Café location is the most guided single-player Gran Turismo experience of any title in the series. This area, along with the Licensing Center, is really where the first few hours of gameplay take place. It’s a clever way to introduce new players to the game, but people familiar with Gran Turismo are going to try to bust through the initial championships as quickly as possible. Not every location on the map is immediately available, so this is required driving and reading for every player to unlock online play, the tuning shop, and even photo mode. The Café is the inner hub of the world map. It gives objectives, pointing you where to race next and which cars to collect, but it also gives players brief historic information on each car they’ve collected. It also acts as a trophy cabinet for awards you’ve earned from winning championships.

In an effort to educate new and returning car enthusiasts, GT7 goes further than introducing cars with basic stats and specs. Historical context is given in brief excerpts throughout. The groups of cars you collect are meaningful and have things in common, sometimes showing a line of progression in either a brand or vehicle segment. Rather than make you Google car names, GT7 puts up a solid effort to provide important context for everything you unlock. Dude, Where’s My Car(s)?At launch, GT7 will carry more than 420 different cars, which is less than the number in Gran Turismo 2 back in 1999. The 420-car start is a big improvement from Gran Turismo Sport’s 168-car launch in 2017 that would later grow with free updates beyond 330 cars today. Sony says more cars and tracks will be added but hasn’t officially announced when or how many.

Sony Interactive Entertainment

So, we the public want more cars and tracks. GT7’s spectacularly detailed re-creation of everything from a 2014 Honda Fit hybrid to BMW M3 GT2 race car only strengthens this desire. There have been some exciting newer cars added to the dealerships, including the Nissan Z, the 10Best-winning Toyota GR86 from Gran Turismo Sport, and every insane Gran Turismo Vision concept. GT7 even provides your choice of either the 335-hp 2019 Toyota Supra, or the 382-hp 2020 Supra. But why is the 2011 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor still the freshest Ford pickup in the game? Where’s the new Raptor, or better yet, where’s the 702-hp Ram 1500 TRX?One More LapWe expect the single-player progression and achievement element in GT7 to easily turn this video game into an unhealthy obsession. We spent roughly an hour or two redoing our licensing tests to beat our colleagues’ time over at Road & Track. Our favorite aspect of Gran Turismo Sport was the highly competitive online racing. GT7 has that too, and this is the title that will ultimately get people more motivated to experience the Easter Egg hunt that is finding a PlayStation 5.

Gran Turismo 7 25th Anniversary Edition – PS5 Disc & PS4 Entitlement

PlayStation
amazon.com

$89.99

Gran Turismo 7 launches March 4th. Standard Editions are available for pre-order on PlayStation 4 for $59.99 and PlayStation 5 for $69.99. Preorder bonuses include extra in-game credits, a free car pack that includes the Mazda RX-Vision GT3 concept, the Porsche 917 Living Legend concept, and the Japanese Grand Touring Championship Castrol Tom’s Toyota Supra GT500 race car. An $89.99 Digital Deluxe Edition is also available for preorder and includes extra in-game credits, PS4 and PS5 dual entitlement, and a special Toyota GR Yaris painted in your country’s special livery, as well as the game’s official soundtrack.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

If you go to the online configurator for the 2022 Dodge Challenger, you can spec all kinds of crazy combinations for paint color, stripe packages, interior trims, wheels, spoilers, hood scoops, the works. You can pick an engine ranging from a 303-hp 3.6-liter V-6 to an 807-hp SRT Super Stock. But if you want a 2022 model with the 6.2-liter Hellcat supercharged V-8, you can’t choose a six-speed manual.While I only noticed this issue today, Challenger enthusiast forums have been talking about it since 2021. I asked Dodge what’s up with the stick-shift Hellcat, and a spokesperson explained that the six-speed manual was removed from the configurator late in the 2021 model year. The spokesperson described it as a temporary situation and said that a revised calibration for this powertrain combo will be coming that will allow the stick-shift Hellcat to go on sale again. The spokesperson was not able to say when ordering will reopen for the manual Challenger Hellcat but specified that production of stick-shift models was suspended in November 2021.It’s a disappointment, for sure, because the manual Hellcat was a charming mix of modern performance and retro engagement. But fear not: Challenger R/T models with the 375-hp 5.7-liter V-8 and Scat Packs with the 485-hp 6.4-liter V-8 are both still available with a six-speed manual.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

About one in six Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 orders each year choose to pay an extra $10,000 for optional stripes, Ford tells Car and Driver.There are $1000 vinyl stripes on the options list, but the more expensive choice is a hand-painted application.The Shelby GT500’s $10K stripes are available in Absolute Black, Kona Blue, and Oxford White.In 2020, when Ford announced that the new Mustang Shelby GT500 would be offered with hand-painted racing stripes that cost an extra $10,000, we questioned how many people would actually buy the pricey option. However, it sounds like the hand-painted stripes are more popular than we imagined. We checked in with a Ford spokesperson, who told us that every year since the start of production, about one in six Shelby GT500s is ordered with the hand-painted stripes.

The 2022 Shelby GT500 carries an MSRP of $78,350, so checking the box for the expensive stripes adds nearly 13 percent to the car’s starting price. They come in three paint colors: Absolute Black, Kona Blue, and Oxford White. For shoppers who crave the striped look but want to save $9000, a set of $1000 vinyl stripes in similar shades is also available.

Ford

We were surprised to learn that approximately 17 percent of people who purchase a GT500 pay for the painted-on stripes. We were also surprised when Ford told us that overall sales of the stripes exceed those of the $10,000 Carbon Fiber Handling package, which included upgrades such as aerodynamic add-ons, adjustable strut top mounts, and 20-inch carbon-fiber wheels. It’s not an apples-to-apples comparison, though, since the $10K carbon-fiber kit was only offered for one year. Ford says it doesn’t track specific production numbers by packages or models, so we obviously can’t say for sure whether the stripes or the handling package was more popular for the 2021 model year, but it sounds like sales were closer than we’d have expected.

Ford

Every new Ford Mustang–including the GT500–is built at the company’s assembly plant in Flat Rock, Michigan. However, Shelby models optioned with the painted stripes have them applied after the cars leave the assembly line; it’s part of a partnership with Penske. We’ve been told the process involves hand-prepping, painting, and then clear-coating. Initially, that detailed process meant limited availability, but Ford says it has since improved production and has been able to meet customer demand.Considering the $10,000 stripes are surprisingly popular on the GT500, we asked the folks on Ford’s PR team if there are any plans to offer them on more mainstream Mustang models. They declined to comment on future products. After all, it’s hard to imagine a future when someone would pay $10K to paint stripes on a $30,000 to $40,000 pony car. Then again, we’ve clearly been surprised by Mustang shoppers’ appetite for pricey stripes before.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Ford has debuted a new generation of the Everest, a body-on-frame SUV based on the Ranger pickup.The Everest uses the same series of turbo-diesel engines as the global Ranger, as well as the gas-powered 2.3-liter EcoBoost expected to motivate the U.S.-market Ranger.The interior is very similar to that of its truck sibling, with a massive vertical touchscreen in the center console and a new digital gauge cluster behind the steering wheel.The next-generation Ford Ranger, already revealed for global markets, will hit our shores by 2023 and will bring with it a hard-core Raptor variant sporting nearly 400 horsepower, 33-inch all-terrain tires, and Fox shocks. But the U.S. will miss out on the Ranger’s SUV sibling, the Everest, with Ford revealing the next-generation body-on-frame SUV today for the rest of the world.

Ford

Ford

The Everest shares its C-shaped LED headlights and grille with the Ranger but trades the truck’s chunky front bumper for a more refined look. There is, of course, a cabin instead of a bed, as well as longer rear doors for easier access to the backseat. Horizontal taillights are connected by an Everest-branded trim piece. The interior also closely mirrors that of the Ranger, with a vertical 10.1-or 12.0-inch touchscreen in the center console and an 8.0- or 12.4-inch digital instrument cluster behind the wheel. A 360-degree camera linked to the screen helps with parking and traversing rough terrain.

Powering the Everest are a mix of turbo-diesel engines not likely to be offered on the Ranger we will receive in the United States, with a 3.0-liter V-6 positioned above single- and twin-turbocharged versions of a 2.0-liter inline-four. The gas-powered 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder expected to power the U.S.-market Ranger will become available in 2023. A six-speed automatic and 10-speed automatic transmission are available depending on trim and engine. Two four-wheel-drive systems will be offered, and certain markets will also get a rear-wheel-drive Everest. While the United States does already get a Ranger-related off-road SUV in the form of the Bronco, that won’t stop us from daydreaming about tackling dirt roads in the more subtle-looking Everest.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

• Our Bring a Trailer pick of the day is this refurbished and upgraded 1975 Chevrolet K5 Blazer four-speed 4×4. • This model year was the last for the Blazer’s iconic removable roof.• Bidding is open on this 1975 model until Monday, March 7, with current bidding at $20,000. The 2023 Chevrolet Blazer may be a stylish crossover with pleasing road manners for the daily commute, but there’s little of it that resembles its more rugged ancestry. Fortunately, examples of that history remain available. Take for example this 1975 Chevrolet K5 Blazer 4×4, which is open for bidding until March 7 on the Bring a Trailer auction site—which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos. Originally developed as an answer to the Ford Bronco and the International Harvester Scout, the original 1969 Blazer was essentially an SUV version of Chevy’s C- and K-series pickup trucks. The Blazer featured in this listing is from the second generation, which started in 1973 and lasted for nearly two decades. Pre-1976 models, like the one from today’s listing, featured completely removable roofs, giving them an unmistakable look on the road.

Bring a Trailer

According to the listing, this Blazer was a former forestry service truck that has since been repainted in an appropriately ’70s black-and-red motif. The 350-cubic-inch V-8 has the requisite upgrades: new cam, intake manifold, carburetor, and so on. The engine is connected to a four-speed manual transmission and a two-speed transfer case. Additional off-road improvements include a 4.0-inch lift, locking front hubs, and 33-inch tires. While a five-digit odometer means the true mileage is unknown, the listing says rust repairs were made to the floor and that the frame was sandblasted and repainted. It’s easy to appreciate the attention to detail evident in the badging and painted bowties on the quarter-panels.

Bring a Trailer

One hopes that the success of the new Ford Bronco and Bronco Sport might inspire Chevy to make a spiritual successor to the early Blazer (don’t hold your breath for a new International Scout). If not, there will surely be more examples like this one, which currently has a high bid of $20,000 in an auction set to end on Monday, March 7. If I didn’t already own a 1972 Chevy C10, I’d be tempted to place a bid.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Stellantis said today that it will bring out the first fully electric Jeep in early 2023.The image shown with the announcement appears to show a vehicle about the size of the Compass, but no name or details were provided. The Jeep EV is only one of 100 planned EV launches from the multi-brand automaker by 2030, including electric muscle cars and family vehicles.At a global press event in Amsterdam, Netherlands, today Stellantis laid out its future business plan, called Dare Forward 2030. Unsurprisingly, it focuses on electrification, mobility, data as a service, reduced carbon footprint, increased customer care, and so on. With regard to new product, Stellantis promises more than 100 launches between now and 2030.

Stellantis

The highlights include Jeep’s first EV, coming in “early 2023.” No word yet on whether that’s a new model or an EV version of an existing Jeep, although the timeline certainly suggests the latter, and based on the image, we’d speculate that vehicle will be the size of the Compass. That new Jeep EV will beat the previously announced Wrangler EV, which is set to arrive in 2024.

Stellantis

The next battery-electric offering will be a Ram ProMaster van in late 2023, followed by a Ram 1500 electric pickup in 2024 (teaser image above). Although the company acknowledges that they are late to the blossoming EV pickup market, CEO Carlos Tavares boasts that the Ram will beat all others—including the Rivian R1T, Ford F-150 Lightning, Chevrolet Silverado EV, and even the Tesla Cybertruck—in range, towing, payload, and charging time. That’s quite a claim, and we’ll be watching closely to see if it delivers.

Stellantis

The Wrangler EV also launches in 2024, in addition to “Lifestyle Family SUVs” from Jeep as well as Dodge’s first electric, described as a “Performance Muscle Car.” Chrysler finally joins the party in 2025 with a “Lifestyle Family Car,” which should be based on the Airflow concept unveiled at CES.The goal is to have 50 percent of U.S. sales being EVs by 2030, with that figure being 100 percent in Europe.

Stellantis

In addition to battery-electrics, Stellantis is also planning to delve further into hydrogen-powered vehicles. Last year, the company introduced a hydrogen-powered version of the Peugeot e-Expert and Opel Vivaro-e mid-size vans, and it will expand those offerings to larger models in 2024, with the U.S. getting a hydrogen-powered full-size Ram ProMaster van in 2025. Tier 1 supplier Faurecia is a technology partner on the hydrogen effort, which is likely to be exclusively a fleet offering. The company plans to further expand hydrogen powertrains into heavy-duty trucks.

Stellantis

Interestingly, it appears—from the above slide at least—that Stellantis is operating under a No Brand Left Behind policy. Even Vauxhall and Lancia are included! CEO Carlos Tavares said, however, that no additional Stellantis brands will be coming to the United States, so apparently, Francophiles can forget about seeing DS or Peugeot automobiles here.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Good news for Chrysler: Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares today said the brand will be “relaunched” with “gorgeous” new models.Tavares was speaking at an event in Amsterdam on Tuesday morning.He also said no additional Stellantis brands are coming to the U.S. market. On that list are Peugeot, Citroën, Opel, and other marques not currently sold here. With just two models in its lineup, one of which is the ancient 300 sedan, the Chrysler brand has been teetering on the brink of extinction for some time. But no longer. At an event outside of Amsterdam today to discuss the future product strategy for the 15-brand Stellantis empire, CEO Carlos Tavares said that “Chrysler is one of the emotional pillars of the former FCA. It’s important for us to give this brand a future and opportunity to rebound,” and that “Chrysler will be relaunched.” He added that the coming Chrysler models “look really gorgeous,” which is something that CEOs always say about future products.We expect one of the first new models to be an electric compact crossover called the Airflow (pictured above) that will compete with the Tesla Model Y, Ford Mustang Mach-E, and Volvo XC40 Recharge. More specifics on future entries may be part of the presentation happening later today.The plans for the other faltering U.S. brand, Fiat, which sells only the 500X crossover at the moment, don’t sound as concrete. “We still have to think about how we make the Fiat brand rebound in the U.S.,” Tavares said. “We have a couple of ideas, and we didn’t yet make all of the decisions.”In speaking more broadly about the U.S. brand strategy, Tavares said, “We have the strategic vision to invest in all the American brands,” but added that “I have no intention to bring more brands to the U.S. right now. I think we have enough.” This is a developing story. We will update as more information is available.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More

Faraday Future, a California-based electric-vehicle startup, has showed a prototype version of its FF 91, which was built at its plant in Hanford, California.The company says production of the car will start in the third quarter of this year, but it’s worth noting that the company has missed claimed production dates more than once in the past five years.Faraday Future has had a tumultuous history, including its founder stepping down and declaring personal bankruptcy in 2019.Does the name Faraday Future ring a bell? In 2017, the Los Angeles-based electric startup revealed the FF 91 crossover at the Consumer Electronics Show and claimed production would begin in 2018. Five years later, the FF 91 has yet to hit public roads, sidelined while Faraday Future has battled financial issues. But Faraday Future is still kicking, apparently. The company revealed last week that it has built its first “production intent” FF 91. If Faraday Future is to be believed—and we’re not sure that’s totally the case—production is “on schedule” to begin in the third quarter of 2022.

The “production-intent” FF 91 prototype.
Faraday Future

With Faraday Future having receded from the limelight for so long, a refresher is due. The company was founded in 2014 by Chinese businessman Jia Yueting in California. In 2015, the company announced that it would build a plant in North Las Vegas, Nevada. By the time the FF 91—which was supposed to come to life in that factory—was unveiled in 2017, financial troubles had already begun. There were reports of accumulating debts, lawsuits from suppliers, and the claim from former employees that Faraday Future was actually two companies, with a separate entity set up in the Cayman Islands owning Faraday Future’s intellectual property. Founder Jia had also established another competing electric vehicle venture, the LeEco LeSee, which insiders alleged was pulling funds and talent away from Faraday Future, despite other sources claiming that the LeSee was never a real car (it still hasn’t materialized). In July 2017, a Chinese court froze $182 million in assets belonging to Jia, his wife, and LeEco affiliates, and days later Faraday Future said its North Las Vegas factory plans had been scuppered. August saw Faraday Future sign a lease for a former Pirelli tire plant in Hanford, California, and a year later Faraday Future sold a 45 percent stake to Evergrande Group—a Chinese property developer incorporated in the Cayman Islands—for $854 million. But two months later Evergrande pulled out of the deal, and Faraday Future began massive layoffs and salary cuts. In 2019, Jia filed for personal bankruptcy with over $3 billion in debt and stepped down from his role as CEO. Things went quiet at Faraday Future until 2021, when the company went public on the Nasdaq stock exchange via a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company—the same strategy employed by startup Lucid Motors.

Faraday Future

Throughout all of the financial topsy-turviness, Faraday Future has continued to promise the arrival of the FF 91. In 2018, the company said it had built a pre-production prototype at the Hanford plant and said production would begin in 2019. Now Faraday Future says it has built a “production intent” FF 91 in Hanford. According to a Faraday Future spokesperson, the latest FF 91 vehicle features a new instrument panel, front and rear consoles, and production-intent exterior lighting. There is also new exterior badging, a new production-spec lidar assembly mounted on the roof, and production paint applied in the paint booth in the Hanford plant.

The specifications of the FF 91 remain unchanged since the 2017 reveal. Three electric motors—two at the rear and one up front—supply a stated 1050 horsepower to all four wheels. Faraday Future claims a zero-to-60-mph time under 2.4 seconds for the crossover, which measures 206.9 inches long, just shy of the length of a 2022 Mercedes-Benz S-class. The juice comes from a 130.0-kWh battery pack, which Faraday Future says will provide a 378-mile range on the EPA test cycle. Given Faraday Future’s financial history, we are taking this most recent announcement with many, many grains of salt. If the FF 91 does reach production by the end of this year, a six-figure price is expected, putting it in competition with the Tesla Model X and Lucid Motors’ Air. The top-of-the-line FF 91 Futurist Alliance model, the company says, will cost more than $200,000, will be limited to 300 units, and is aiming to battle Bentley, Rolls-Royce, and Maybach. The Hanford plant will start with an annual volume of 10,000 units, with room to expand to 30,000 vehicles per year, should things ever reach that point.
This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io More